Biological control of Rigidoporus lignosus in Hevea brasiliensis in Nigeria

•In vitro and In vivo evaluation of fungal antagonist on Rigidoporus lignosus were carried out.•Hypocrea jecorina was most effective in the control of R. lignosus.•Antagonists and pathogen inoculated at different time gave higher mycelial inhibition.•Mortality rate was higher at 60 d after inoculation and declined thereafter.

The study was conducted to evaluate in vitro and in vivo control of fungal antagonists on Rigidoporus lignosus (klotzsch) Imaz in Hevea brasiliensis (Willd. ex A. Juss.) Muell. Arg. in the rain forest zone of Nigeria. In vitro assessments of biological agents were carried out in dixenic cultures in Petri plates. In vivo tests were carried out in the nursery using Hypocrea virens and Hypocrea jecorina. Significant differences were observed with the dual inoculations of fungal antagonists and R. lignosus inoculated the same day, and the antagonists inoculated 24 h before inoculation of R. lignosus. Hypocrea jecorina was most effective in the control of R. lignosus with percentage inhibition of 86.83 %. Hypocrea virens, H. jecorina, Trichoderma spirale, Trichoderma sp., Trichoderma sp. Pers, and Hypocrea lixii were effective on R. lignosus. Fungal antagonists inoculated 24 h before inoculation of R. lignosus exhibited higher inhibitory efficacies than antagonists and R. lignosus inoculated the same day. In the in vivo evaluation of fungi antagonists on R. lignosus, seedlings in H. jecorina treatment at 60 d and H. virens treatment at 150 d after inoculations respectively had the highest plant heaths (highest length of stem and length of tap rot, lowest plant death, and least foliar symptom) compared to the control. Mortality rate was higher at 60 d after inoculation and decline from the third months onward. Significant differences were observed between the control and R. lignosus treatment in all the parameters evaluated.